Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing in Tonic Solfa
Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing in Tonic Solfa: the solfa line by line with the words, staff notation, all 3 verses, and a piano to sing along with.
- Key
- Eb major
- Doh
- Eb
- Time
- 3/2
- Starts on
- d (E♭)
- Range
- d to d' (E♭ to E♭, an octave)
- Tune
- RIPLEY (GREGORIAN)
- Words
- Christopher Wordsworth
- Music
- From Gregorian Chant
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune RIPLEY (GREGORIAN) (From Gregorian Chant); words by Christopher Wordsworth (1807–1885). Sources and licences.
The solfa with the words
| dHeav'n--mly- | sFa------mther,-fsend-lThy- | sbles----msing---sOn-dThy- |
| fchil--mdren-rga----rthered--- | dhere,-------dMay-mthey- |
| sall,-----mThy-fName-lcon-- | sfes----msing,---sBe-dto- |
| fThee-mfo--rre----rver--- | ddear;-------d'May-tthey- |
| d'be,-----slike-lJo--lseph,- | slo----sving,---d'Du--tti-- |
| d'ful,-----sand-lchaste,-land- | spure;-------dAnd-mtheir- |
| sfaith,-----mlike-fDa--lvid,- | spro----mving,---sStead--dfast- |
| fun--sto-rdeath---ren---- | ddure.------- |
The solfa line by line
The same solfa as plain text, a line of the hymn at a time, with the words of the first verse under it — easy to copy into your own notes or a WhatsApp message to the choir.
Doh is Eb · 3/2
Staff notation
The melody on the treble staff in Eb major, with the first verse under the notes.
The staff is drawn here when you scroll to it.
The words
Heav'nly Father, send Thy blessing
On Thy children gathered here,
May they all, Thy Name confessing,
Be to Thee forever dear;
May they be, like Joseph, loving,
Dutiful, and chaste, and pure;
And their faith, like David, proving,
Steadfast unto death endure.
Holy Savior, who in meekness
Didst vouchsafe a child to be,
Guide their steps, and help their weakness,
Bless and make them like to Thee;
Bear Thy lambs, when they are weary,
In Thine arms and at Thy breast;
Through life's desert, dry and dreary,
Bring them to Thy heav'nly rest.
Spread Thy golden pinions o'er them,
Holy Spirit, from above,
Guide them, lead them, go before them,
Give them peace, and joy, and love;
Thy true temples, Holy Spirit,
May they with Thy glory shine,
And immortal bliss inherit,
And for evermore be Thine.
How to sing it from the solfa
- Find doh first. Play or hum Eb and sing d r m f s up from it, so the whole choir has the key in their ears before you start.
- Pitch the first note. The tune starts on d (E♭), on the first syllable of “Heav'nly”, as a pickup before the first full bar.
- Count the time. 3/2 means three minim beats in each bar. In the grid every cell is half a crotchet: a dash (–) holds the note before it, and _ is a rest.
- Know the notes. The tune uses d r m f s l t. A comma after a note (s,) is the octave below; an apostrophe (d') is the octave above.
New to solfa? Read how to read Tonic Solfa and how to find the doh of a song.
About the hymn
The words are by Christopher Wordsworth, first published in 1863. The tune, RIPLEY (GREGORIAN), is from Gregorian Chant. This version of the melody and the words comes from the Open Hymnal Project.
- Words (1863): Christopher Wordsworth (1807–1885)
- Melody: From Gregorian Chant
Melody and words from the Open Hymnal Project (public domain), edited by Brian J. Dumont; tune RIPLEY (GREGORIAN) (From Gregorian Chant); words by Christopher Wordsworth (1807–1885). The Open Hymnal Project publishes this hymn as public domain; NoteFusion's engine wrote the solfa from its notes. The melody has not yet been checked against a printed hymn book.
Questions about Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing
What is the doh of Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing?
In this version, in Eb major, doh is Eb. If your choir sings it in another key, doh moves to the new key note and every solfa syllable stays the same — that is what movable doh means.
What note does Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing start on?
It starts on d (E♭ in Eb major), a pickup on the first syllable of “Heav'nly” before the first full bar. Find doh first, then sing up or down to d.
Is Heavenly Father Send Thy Blessing in the public domain?
Yes. Christopher Wordsworth died in 1885; the words were first published in 1863 and the music in 1839. Everyone named died before 1955 and both were published before 1929, so the hymn is out of copyright in Nigeria, the UK, the EU and the United States. Modern arrangements and translations can still be under copyright.